Rammstein: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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Nearly all of Rammstein's songs are in German. Educated in East German schools, the members were all taught Russian as a second language rather than English. In 2019, Flake commented: "I saw a lot of East German bands that sung in very bad English to people who didn't understand English – it was absolutely stupid. But if you really want to tell your emotions, you have to speak in your mother tongue."<ref name="MHfeature"/> Songs they have recorded entirely or partly in English include: a cover of [[Depeche Mode]]'s 1986 song "[[Stripped (song)|Stripped]]" and English renditions of "Engel", "Du hast", and "Amerika". The original version of "Amerika" as well as "Stirb nicht vor mir (Don't Die Before I Do)" and "Pussy" also contain some lyrics in English. The song "[[Moskau (Rammstein song)|Moskau]]" ("Moscow") contains a chorus in Russian, and Till Lindemann has an unofficial song called "[[Shtil (Calm)|Schtiel]]" (cover of song "Штиль" / "Shtil" by Russian popular heavy metal band [[Aria (band)|Aria]]) entirely in Russian.<ref name="auto">{{cite news |title =''Sunday Herald Sun'', Melbourne, Australia |newspaper= Sunday Herald Sun}}</ref> "[[Te quiero puta]]!" is entirely in Spanish, "Frühling in Paris" has a chorus in French, "Zeig dich" contains lyrics in Latin performed by a choir and "Ausländer" has lyrics in English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Russian. Oliver Riedel commented that "[the] German language suits heavy metal music. French might be the language of love, but German is the language of anger".<ref name="auto"/> In an interview with Ultimate Guitar, when asked whether Rammstein would ever create an original song entirely in English, Till Lindemann stated that 'Rammstein will never write a song in English, it's like asking Buddha to kill a pig'.<ref name="Ultimate Guitar">{{cite web |title= Till Lindemann: 'Rammstein Will Never Write a Song in English, It's Like Asking Buddha to Kill a Pig' |publisher= Ultimate Guitar |url= http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/till_lindemann_rammstein_will_never_write_a_song_in_english_its_like_asking_buddha_to_kill_a_pig.html |access-date= 22 July 2015}}</ref>

The band's lyrics, as sung by Till Lindemann, are an essential element of their music, and shape the perception by fans and a wider public. Among other things that are seen as controversial, Rammstein also refers to classical German literature, e.g. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's famous poems ''[[Der Erlkönig]]'' (1778) and ''[[Heidenröslein|Das Heidenröslein]]'' (1771) for the songs "Dalai Lama" and "Rosenrot", respectively.<ref>''Lüke'', Lüke, Martina. "Modern Classics: Reflections on Rammstein in the German Class". Die Unterrichtspraxis/Teaching German 41:1 (Spring 2008): 15–23.</ref> Several of their songs are related to controversial and taboo subjects such as [[sadomasochism]], homosexuality, [[intersex]]uality, [[incest]], [[pedophilia]], [[necrophilia]], [[Human cannibalism|cannibalism]], [[pyromania]], religion and [[sexual violence]]. Also several of their songs are allegedly inspired by real-life events. These songs include "Rammstein" ([[Ramstein air show disaster]]), "Mein Teil" ([[Armin Meiwes|The Meiwes Case]]), "Wiener Blut" ([[Fritzl case]]) and "Donaukinder" ([[2000 Baia Mare cyanide spill]]). Their fourth album, ''Reise, Reise'', is loosely inspired by the crash of [[Japan Air Lines Flight 123]].<ref name="Metal Hammer">{{Cite magazine |last=Daly |first=Joe |date=1 May 2019 |title=Rammstein – The Ultimate Celebration – Bang Bangers! |magazine=[[Metal Hammer|Metal Hammer UK]] |page=55}}</ref> The band have also occasionally delved into politics with their lyrics. "[[Amerika (song)|Amerika]]" is a critique of the cultural and political imperialism of the United States all over the world. The lyrics of the song "[[Deutschland (song)|Deutschland]]" contain the lines "Deutschland! / Meine Liebe / kann ich dir nicht geben" (Germany! / My love / [is what] I cannot give you), which conveys the band's inability to have unquestioned patriotic feelings.<ref>{{cite web |last1=genius.com |title=Rammstein – DEUTSCHLAND (English Translation) |url=https://genius.com/16826344 |website=Genius.com |access-date=4 April 2019}}</ref>

==Live performances==